President-elect Joe Biden's newly appointed Vice Presidential candidate Kamala Harris has recently come under fire from Black American voters. In an old interview conducted in February of 2019 (Black History Month) by The Grio's Natasha Alford at Power Rising in New Orleans, La. Senator Kamala Harris demonstrated a solid stance on reparations. This issue concerns many black voters. It's a particular point that most black voters agree upon (liberal, progressive, or conservative). The now-viral video still has not cracked 50k views on The Grio's Youtube Channel but has hundreds of thousands of views on many black social media influencer pages. The then Presidential hopeful Kamala Harris not only deflected the idea of reparations for black Americans. She also denounces the idea of doing anything solely for Black People in America. The senator seemed appalled that she was even asked.
In the past, the democratic party could boldly spit in the face of Black Americans with no repercussions. But with the first Black American President, President Barack Obama doing so much solely for homosexuals and minimally for Black Americans(who got him elected) in two terms. Many Blacks have become fed up with the Democratic Party. The disgust manifested when the former first lady and Senator Hilary Rodham Clinton lost the 2016 Presidential election to a Reality TV Star Donald Trump.
The year 2020 has been tumultuous for all Americans but, more specifically, Blacks. The deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmuad Arbery sparked a worldwide protest highlighting social injustices and systemic racism in America. Even though Blacks are a minority in America, they disproportionately account for the number of COVID deaths, unemployment spikes, and are now facing a monumental eviction crisis. However, these crises have not wavered black resilience. If the Democratic Party wants to continue to play chicken with the black vote, we will find ourselves back in 2016.